Britgirl29

On 27/10/2019 at 00:21, LindaH27 said:

Ooh some interesting news from the test email.now working  on December 2015 but the very  interesting bit is what follows

We have identified some discrepancies in processing times between offshore and onshore visas in both Parent and Contributory Parent categories and are taking action to correct them.

* Onshore Contributory Parent (UU884 and DG864) visa subclasses have been assessed up to January 2017. Onshore Contributory Parent visas lodged from January 2017 onwards are likely to take longer to process while we action offshore Contributory Parent (CA143 and TU173) applications to bring the dates back to parity.

** Onshore Aged Parent (BP804) visas have been assessed up to Queued Date of May 2012. Onshore Aged Parent applications with a Queued Date of May 2012 onwards are likely to take longer to process while we action offshore Parent (AX103) applications to bring the dates back to parity.

 

This looks like good news for the 143 visa applicants as it seems to imply  that they will be bringing the 143 into line with the 864 applications which have been assessed up to January 2017! 

 

I wonder if this is a new change though as aligning the on and off shore visas timing was mentioned in Go Matilda's blog from Feb 2018

https://www.gm-parent-visas.com/subclass-864-visa-applications-going-nowhere-fast/

Since I started checking the test email at the start of the year 143 has progressed from July 2015 to December 2015 (6 months) and 864 from October 2016 to January 2017 (4 months) so if there has been no recent change and it's just Immigration now deciding to inform people, it could just be that they have been slowing down the processing of 864 visas over the last year rather than stopping processing them entirely. That might just be my wishful thinking though!

It would be great to hear from some of the migration agents on this forum on whether this is a new or old change

This document on the home affairs website gives the number of lodgements and finalisations for each visa type. The number of 864 visa lodgements was 911 for 2016-2017 and 803 for 2017-2018, which as a portion of the 143 visa lodgements for those years was 4.6% and 7.8% respectively

https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/foi/files/2018/fa180700438-document-released.PDF

For both of the years given the number of 864 visas finalised each year was c.400 so the trend seems to be lodgements are double the number of finalisations for the 864 visa. 

This other document says that at the end of Feb 2019, for the 864 there was 1,979 applicants in the queue, compared to 46,339 applicants for the 143 visa so the 864 visa represents 4% of the total combined 143 and 864 applicants. 

https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/foi/files/2019/fa190101309-document-released.PDF

19 hours ago, emma2104 said:

Hi all,

Am new to this forum but from a quick read I am already looking forward to hearing your ideas and advice

I am a PR here and can apply for citizenship from Feb 2020. Myself and my husband are looking to move my parents over from the UK.  We are leaning towards the Contributory Aged Parent visa and my dad turns 66 next July (in line with the increase in retirement age here).  My mum will be 60 however we have been informed that she will have access to the same visa as she is his spouse.

Just wondering about anyones current experiences with this visa?  My parents will need to sell-up and move to Oz to apply onshore (the money from the house sell will be needed to pay for the visa) It is a huge move and obviously comes with risks.

My main concern is my parents falling ill inbetween applying for the visa and the medical being requested, ultimately leading to the visa being denied.  I have looked into the health waiver however if major treatment was needed it would exceed the $49,000 'limit'.  If my parents had private health care would this waive this condition? Or because the cost of this visa is so high, would they be covered for ALL treatment? 

Also, if my dad was to pass away before the visa was granted, would my mum still be able to access it? 

These options terrify me/us but they are all possibilities so we need to cover all bases - I have nightmares of having a parent sent back to England with nothing.  

We have looked at other options however this visa seems (although v expensive) like the best option to get them here to stay permanently asap.  

Does anyone have an update on current wait times?

I hope this message does not sound overly dramatic but it is good to hear experiences.  We will probably go through a lawyer to have their added support too.

Thanks so much!

Emma

On 09/05/2019 at 19:07, Nanna said:

We are just wanting to find out what we would or wouldn't be entitled to to seriously consider this mammoth decision.

 It would be awful if we regretted the move for financial reasons.  

We have just heard of a friends doctor in Perth who recently died from cancer as even he couldnt pay for the very expensive but necessary medication.  

I'm not an expert but hopefully my parents experience of applying for an 864 may be helpful. They are from the UK and both over 65

They applied for an 864 in Australia in June 2017 and once their 3 month tourist visa expired they moved onto a bridging visa. Medicare gave them a blue interim medicare card which enables them to get top level medical insurance at similar prices to an Aussie PR. There is generally a 12 month waiting period for most treatments, but after that had passed my mum was able to have a double knee replacement in a private hospital with private rehab afterwards and only a small amount of out of pocket expenses. She was really pleased with the quality of the care. As medicare holders they are also entitled to go to a bulk bill doctor. They are not able to get a seniors card yet as they are not PR which means they pay full fare on public transport. They haven't bought a home over here and have no intention to do so as they prefer renting. The UK pension being fixed at the rate they came over is annoying, but they have a private pension too which does increase each year. It does fluctuate with exchange rates though.

My parents have been very glad they have come over now rather than waiting for an offshore visa back in the UK. As with any visa there is always a risk that the visa won't be granted, but this way they have at least enjoyed 2+ years living in Australia with their family. 

Whatever decision you make I suggest you make it soon as with the way things are at the moment with processing times waiting a few months can seem to equate to a year added to visa grant which increases the risk of visas not being granted. 

@ramot Thanks! That's reassuring to hear

6 hours ago, LindaH27 said:

Mum would have to be 66 for applications after 30 June and will have to pay another application charge and lose the existing 143 charge and her place/date in the queue. Yes that’s an option but it’s one that many people think is likely to be stopped in the future as Australia considers there are too many people (especially expensive older parents) on bridging visas and is looking closely at this and other visas. You are not considered as having PR , just as visitors, which may impact in other areas like buying houses etc. They’ve made a start by reducing the number of parent visas they will now grant - approx 6000 contributory visas a year which will also include 173,143, 864 and a few 405/410 pathways. They  haven’t made a decision yet but from a report I read a few months ago I believe that the consultation period has now closed. 

The Australian government can and has in the past made retrospective changes to visas. There was one in the  past which I think was related to student visas where people on bridging visas had them revoked and they had to leave. I seem to remember @ramot (I think) talking about it  The 864 visa also comes with a few restrictions -   no Medicare unless there’s a very basic reciprocal agreement with certain countries so private health insurance is a must. The medical must still be passed at the time they finally get around to processing the visa - if that’s quite a few years in the future your health could deteriorate (none of us knows how healthy we will be in the future) and you would have to leave if you failed the medical and have nothing to return to in your home country if you’ve sold up. In UK you may find NHS is also restricted if you return home.   For couples,  only one has to fail the medical to be refused the visa. 

Im also of the opinion that Australia is extremely aware of the possibility of parents changing to the 864 visa because of the increasingly longer  waiting times for the other parent visas and may be looking into this “loophole” for want of a better word!

All just my opinion for what it’s worth . Guess its a gamble you take! I wish you well whatever you decide. 

Although immigration is continually a hot topic with the Australian government and the media, the government has struggled to get any recent changes through parliament and the senate due to their slim majority. Both the increases to AOS for the parent visa, and the changes in citizenship got withdrawn as they weren't going to get the required votes in the senate, and the new parent visa took a long while to get through and only after significant changes. An election is due to be held in May and current indications are that the Labour party is likely to win. They tend to be more immigration friendly so it's doubtful they will introduce any anti immigration changes, particularly as they've criticised the new parent visa for being anti immigration. https://www.sbs.com.au/yourlanguage/punjabi/en/article/2019/02/12/labor-government-will-replace-new-sponsored-parent-visa. 

Rather than cancelling any visas which requires to go through parliament, I think it's more likely the government will continue to reduce the number of grants as that's not a legal change. So hopefully it's just a matter of time before everyone gets their visas!

It's interesting that the number of CPV applicants in the 17/18 year dropped significantly, I wonder if it's because with the longer wait times people have decided if they are going to wait might as well do the 804 visa. 

On medicare my parents are on a BVA for an 864 visa. They were granted an interim medicare card so can access similar medicare to an Australian permanent resident

18 hours ago, Marisawright said:

But that's what surprises me.  If your parents were eligible to get an interim Medicare card, why doesn't everyone on a bridging visa get an interim Medicare card?  It would be interesting to know.

I was also surprised when I checked with my parents and saw it was an interim card (although very relieved!) To get their medicare card they needed to show their passports and bridging visa letter to the Medicare centre. They went to the main one in Sydney which I would imagine would do it correctly but you never know with medicare! 

It would be interesting to hear if other UK residents on on shore parent visas have also got interim cards. I did find this article online which suggests that others have also had medicare cards with full rights 

https://www.gm-parent-visas.com/medicare-while-on-a-bridging-visa/

On 25/03/2019 at 09:55, ramot said:

I can’t answer that as haven’t had either, sorry. However will ask our friend when I see him as he has had a hip replacement, he is applying for partner visa in his 80’s, I think that’s great, he was on a 410 visa like us. I didn’t get the impression from him that it was a problem, but will check with him.

Reference the question asked about the amount charged on health insurance for temporary residents, we have to pay overseas visitors and for full top  covered pay $12,000 annually. It really covers just about all the costs. We have no gap to pay on this cover. Friends have had hip replacements fully covered for example, very expensive but we have no choice as we aren’t entitled to Medicare on our visa even though British.

@ramot if you could that would be great, my parents are in good health generally so that's the main thing that concerned me

@MarisawrightI did some more research as I was worried my parents had the wrong health insurance and had claimed incorrectly. According to the Private Health Insurance Ombudsman website, you can purchase Australian resident's private health insurance if you have an interim or full medicare card. My parents are currently on an interim one so thankfully they meet this criteria - I was worried there was a big bill coming back their way! https://www.privatehealth.gov.au/healthinsurance/overseas/

7 hours ago, ramot said:

Having just had the medical 10 days ago aged in our mid  70’s it really wasn’t too bad. You have a chest X-ray, blood taken to check for HIV etc. blood pressure, checked, asked to read bottom line of an eye chart. Pee in a pot. Then see a Dr who asks the obvious questions,  what pills for what taken, any recent hospital visits, any problems with this and that, hip or knee replacement cholesterol level. Gives you a bit of a physical check up, looked at and felt my neck , had to hold my arms out palms down eyes shut. Checked my skin and then as mentioned I lay on my front and had a quick check over. 

Same for husband checked his back movement as has a bit of stiffness there.

A friend in his early 80’s had exactly the same medical as us, both were in Brisbane.

They are looking for either something contagious like TB or something that you already have that will cost.

I have a few complaints!!! Osteoporosis, have atrial fibrillation and had an ablation, not concerned.

Hope this allays some concerns, it really was a fairly basic medical. You hear in a couple of days if there is a query health wise , all clear hopefully for us both plus older friend. The results get sent straight to immigration and added to your file. Will Obviously post if there is any feed back from our CO.

@ramot you mentioned that they asked about hip and knee replacement in the medical. Was their concern around whether it would need to be done in the future or whether it had been done in the past? My mum has recently had a double knee replacement but has recovered well and shouldn't need any further treatment

7 hours ago, Marisawright said:

On a bridging visa, your parents are legally non-residents and therefore Overseas Visitors health cover is all they are eligible for.

I’ve often wondered if parents walked into one of the health insurers and just said they needed insurance, whether the consultant would check their passports. They’ve certainly never checked mine! Sounds like your parents have got away with it. Might be a useful loophole 

Ah that's interesting! I know they told the HCF store staff they were on bridging visas, but I think that a lot of people (myself included), don't know the intricacies of what that means. Even at our local medicare centre my parents were incorrectly told they didn't get reciprocal medicare, it was only when they went into the main Sydney one they were able to grant it. 

@Suzie Wambui I'd suggest having a look at the different health care providers to see what they cover as they often differ. You should bear in mind though most have a 12 -24 month waiting period before you can access the more expensive services 

My parents (67 and 68) are in Australia on a bridging visa after applying for an 864 visa. They have couples health insurance with HCF with gold hospital cover (top one) and silver extras cover for around $350 a month. Recently it covered my mum having a knee replacement in a private hospital and private rehab centre with minimum out of pocket expenses. They were very pleased with how much it covered. Because they got it within a year of being in Australia they didn't have to pay the lifetime loading charge for private healthcare

I believe (but best to check with a health fund) that visitor health insurance is for when you are on a visitors visa. Being on a bridging visa allows you to access more choices of health cover.

If you or family are already in Australia I'd suggest going into an HCF store and speaking to someone about your options

Latest update from the department, 864 has moved forward another month - soon be in 2017 

*Updated 06/03/2019

My understanding is that 864 is an onshore visa while 143 is an offshore visa and so you don't get a bridging visa

My parents applied for the 864 visa as they met the aged criteria and wanted to be in Australia right away. As UK citizens they can access reciprocal medicare but they also have private health insurance too. They would need a bridging visa to leave the country and I understand that's reasonably easy to get, but at this time they don't need to. The main benefit is that now visas are taking 4+ years to be granted it means they can live here rather than waiting in the UK. The downside is that if the visa is refused then they would have to leave. We decided that hopefully small risk is worth it

I imagine their issue is if she didn't need ICAEW membership to do her job then was her role really a chartered accountant role. For most people (myself included) even working in industry it was a requirement of my role that I had to be an ICAEW member. 

Have you spoken to the Chartered Accountants of Australia and NZ? They do the assessment so may be able to give you advice

Which accountancy industry body did she do her exams with? Maybe they do a conversion program to the ICAEW?

On 13/02/2019 at 00:08, Lulu said:

Hi, 

as you have personal experience with 864, do you know if it covers aged care down the track (once granted of course)? 

We will be getting private health but wondered what other costs we need to think of during the application process and once approved. 

Appreciate any advice, thanks 

Sorry for the delay in replying! 

My understanding is that the bond payment is supposed to cover any need for social security for a 10 year period. After 10 years when the bond is returned they can then claim social security such as a pension similar to any other Aussie. With grant dates now looking around 5 years, that means your MIL would need to support herself without an Australian pension for around 15 years. If she is eligible for a UK government pension you can get it paid over here (that's what my parents do) but the amount remains fixed and doesn't increase with inflation. My parents work pensions increase the same as it would in the UK. 

I don't think there is any other particular costs you should be aware of, just that general cost of living is more expensive here than in the UK so you should be comfortable your MIL can support herself

I'm glad we made the decision to apply for the on shore visa particularly as visa wait times have blown out. I know there is always a risk of them having their visa rejected and then having to return to the UK but them being here has been amazing. 

Good luck with your decision! I'd recommend making it soon as the longer you wait to apply the further down the list you go

Are they concerned about historical treatments? My mum has previously had a knee replacement but it shouldn't be an ongoing cost as she's recovered well

14 minutes ago, billynomates said:

Do you have any more information / links on this? I haven't come across this before.

It's called the Lifetime Health Cover - the section called New migrations in this link has more details 

https://www.privatehealth.gov.au/healthinsurance/incentivessurcharges/lifetimehealthcover.htm

It says full Medicare cover so it may not apply on a bridging visa as they are on a reciprocal medicare card, but my parents wanted to get private health insurance anyway particularly as my Mum needs a knee replacement. 

And I was wrong it's not technically a  tax, you just pay extra insurance fees 

30 minutes ago, LindaH27 said:

Yes that's the crunch point isn't it - staying healthy! I believe Australia has deported people on bridging visas for failing the eventual medical. How are they managing for medical care now - just the reciprocal agreement if from UK as they wont be eligible for Medicare or are they using private health insurance ?  That's one of the reasons I went down the 143 route as I couldn't guarantee my health wouldn't deteriorate in the future and it was a toss up between waiting it out here in UK and having long visits whilst still keeping my home and friends etc in case I didnt pass the medical or sell up move over for years and then perhaps be faced With failing the medical  and being  sent home  but having nothing and nowhere to come back to. I know lots of people do it though and I really  hope it all works out for your parents.  Just one thing to be aware of though  - The australian government is currently reviewing All visas with the aim of reducing the 99 different visas to just 10 - and in the past they have just decided to cancel certain visas and tell people waiting in the queue they had to leave ! So there are no guarantees. Getting an Australians Visa does seem to be a bit of a lottery sometimes! 

It's a tough decision isn't it! Medicare covers a lot for them on the reciprocal arrangement and then they have private health insurance as well. Australia imposes a tax levy if you don't get insurance within a year of being here on a bridging visa so it made sense to get it when they arrived.

The government changing the law does scare me, but they are struggling to get anything through parliament at the moment and there will be an election later this year year which will hopefully result in a change in government who tend to be less anti immigration. 

I try not to think and worry about it too much but it's hard! 

On 09/01/2019 at 22:03, LindaH27 said:

Apparently immi are taking steps to bring it in line with processing times for 143 - so a long time as they are only processing beginning of July 2015 at present.  I understand that no new 864 visas have been issued for over two years

Thanks! Although it's frustrating that immi are deliberately slowing down the 864 visa processing at least they haven't decided to cancel the visa

I'm lucky that my parents applied onshore so they are currently living in Australia on a bridging visa so it's hopefully just a matter of waiting and hoping they keep healthy for the next few years

Hello! 

Has anyone applied for the aged parent contributory visa (864 and 884) and have an idea of how long it takes? 

The immigration website doesn’t give average processing times as the number is too small. I got excited when I saw on the department email reply that they are up to 27 October 2016 but it looks like from other posts that hasn’t changed in a long time! 

Thanks!